Temporary Installations for Traffic Calming

In communities trying traffic calming for the first time, it may be useful to lay out a new design with cones or temporary markings to test it. This provides emergency vehicle drivers, residents, and others with an opportunity to test the design to ensure that they are comfortable with it. Some communities have constructed elaborate temporary devices with concrete or plastic (“jersey”) barriers. These can instill a negative reaction in the community due to their unattractive appearance and they do not generally have any significant benefits over the simpler test devices. Another option is to install more aesthetic test devices, such as painted flexible curbs that are bolted into the pavement and can easily be adjusted or removed.

Purpose

• Change the entire look of a street to send a message to drivers that
the road is not for fast driving.

Considerations

Estimated Cost

Safety Effects

A summary of studies that have looked at the safety effects of traffic calming in general can be found here.